The virtue of a democratic system with a [constitutionally guaranteed right to free speech] is that it readily enables the people, over time, to be persuaded that what they took for granted is not so, and to change their laws… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
What is a moderate interpretation of the text? Halfway between what it really means and what you'd like it to mean? — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
If you think aficionados of a living Constitution want to bring you flexibility, think again. You think the death penalty is a good idea?… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
More importantly, the Court forgets that ours is a government of laws and not of men. That means we are governed by the terms of our laws, not by the unenacted will of our lawmakers. 'If Congress enacted into law something different from what it intended, then it should amend the statute to conform to its intent.' In the meantime,… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share
Wringing your hands about states' rights, forget it. They're gone. Basically, the federal government can do whatever it wants. Who's going to protect the… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
If you condemn someone who has committed a crime to be tortured, that would be unconstitutional. — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
Burning the flag is a form of expression. Speech doesn't just mean written words or oral words. It could be semaphore. And burning a… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
Being a good person begins with being a wise person. Then, when you follow your conscience, will you be headed in the right direction. — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
The court's job is to uphold the Constitution and you don't call that off in times of crisis. Would the framers have allowed this… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
We have laws against torture. The Constitution says nothing whatever about torture. It speaks of punishment; 'cruel and unusual' punishments are forbidden. — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
If I have brought any message today, it is this: Have the courage to have your wisdom regarded as stupidity. Be fools for Christ.… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share Image
Many think it not only inevitable but entirely proper that liberty give way to security in times of national crisis--that, at the extremes of military exigency, inter arma silent leges. Whatever the general merits of the view that war silences law or modulates its voice, that view has no place in the interpretation and application of a Constitution designed precisely… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share
That's the argument of flexibility and it goes something like this: The Constitution is over 200 years old and societies change. It has to change with society, like a living organism, or it will become brittle and break. But you would have to be an idiot to believe that. The Constitution is not a living organism; it is a legal… — Antonin Scalia Copy Share
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